How High The Moon #2
Chuck Berry Lyrics


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Somewhere there's music
How faint the tune
Somewhere there's heaven
How high the moon
There is no moon above
When love is far away too
Till it comes true
That you love me as I love you

Somewhere there's music
How near, how far
Somewhere there's heaven
It's where you are
The darkest night would shine
If you would come to me soon
Until you will, how still my heart
How high the moon

Somewhere there's music
How faint the tune
Somewhere there's heaven
How high the moon
The darkest night would shine
If you would come to me soon




Until you will, how still my heart
How high the moon

Overall Meaning

Chuck Berry’s How High The Moon is a romantic song that delves into the theme of love and distance. The opening lines, “Somewhere there’s music, how faint the tune, Somewhere there’s heaven how high the moon,” introduces the idea of love being an intangible and mysterious concept. Berry suggests that love is ever-present but elusive, and can be found in a distant and unknown place. The metaphor of the moon is used to signify distance, as it is a celestial body hanging far away from us. Love, too, can feel like it is out of reach and distant. The lines “It is no moon above when love is far away too, Till it comes true that you love me as I love you” indicate that love is only truly felt when reciprocated.


The next verse “Somewhere there's music, how near, how far, Somewhere there's heaven, it's where you are” conveys the idea that love can be both near and far. It can be present within us or far off with the one we love. The line, “The darkest night would shine if you would come to me soon, Until you will, how still my heart. How high the moon” is a plea to the lover to come closer, a cry that the night is darkest without the beloved. The repetition of “somewhere there’s music” and “how high the moon” emphasizes the mystery and distance of love while highlighting that the simple things like music or the moon bring us closer to it.


Overall, How High The Moon is Berry’s take on the complexities of human emotion. It is a song that conveys the intangible and the unexplainable joys of love, couched in the metaphors of music and the moon.


Line by Line Meaning

Somewhere there's music
Music exists somewhere out there, not necessarily physically present but in the form of an expression of sound.


How faint the tune
The music is too soft or delicate to be heard clearly, almost inaudible.


Somewhere there's heaven
There exists a place of ultimate joy and paradise, not necessarily a physical place but rather a state of being.


How high the moon
Heaven is beyond this world, represented by the vast distance between Earth and the moon.


There is no moon above
The physical presence of the moon is absent, symbolizing a lack of hope or happiness.


When love is far away too
The absence of love or companionship reinforces the lack of hope or happiness.


Till it comes true
Hope for love to materialize and bring happiness and joy in life.


That you love me as I love you
The need for mutual love, a two-way street, in order for happiness to be achieved.


How near, how far
The presence of love, happiness, and heaven can feel close or distant depending on one's perception and experience.


It's where you are
The existence of happiness, represented by heaven or music, is linked to the location of a loved one.


The darkest night would shine
The power of love, represented by a metaphorical light, to bring brightness in one's life, even in dark times.


If you would come to me soon
The hope for the loved one to return and alleviate the current absence of happiness or joy.


Until you will, how still my heart
The longing and absence of the loved one creates a yearning and stillness in the singer's heart.


How high the moon
The distance between the singer and the presence of happiness, love or heaven, symbolized by the vast distance between Earth and the moon.




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Morgan Lewis, Nancy Hamilton

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

Otis Gibbs

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All comments from YouTube:

Otis Gibbs

Here's Jimmy Page playing the guitar Chris built for him.
https://youtu.be/VPfjWsbCZV0

Joseph Williams

That's super amazing I'm so thrilled not only Eric Clapton got Jimmy Page back on his feet again & wanting to play again bc you to my friend for building this Chuck Berry Guitar for him , cause get this I own Alot of DVD's bc also Old School Vhs Tapes & It's The 1983 Arms Concert with Page , Clapton , Jeff Beck , Steve Winwood plus Rolling Stones Members Charlie & Bill Wyman on that Concert and Long Story short Jimmy Page gets up and Plays an
( Instrumental ) Stairway to Heaven on that Red 18 String Double neck and Plays the song he hadn't Played Stairway since Led Zeppelin Days he was so Heartbroken by John Bonham's leaving us ....... He was trying to hide the tears during the performance , he also gets up wirh Clapton & Jeff to Play Layla and other great songs & oh by the way I was really moved emotionally by your Story about The Beatles cause I'm also a Huge Beatles fan and a Jimi Hendrix fan as well & Yes it was hurtful when John Lennon left us as well bc anyways ....... Man what a Cool Guitar you Built for Page Thank you for your story u shared plus I went ahead and pressed Subscribe to this channel cause I'm a Guitarist to feel free to check out my YouTube channel here I Jam Alot of Videos !!!

Rick Valentine

Cool to see such and amazing riff taught to a man that wrote SO many amazing riffs. Jack talks about a Bond movie or something and now it's being played at college football games all over the country. What a weird World!! :)

zolazingo

👍😍 . . . a great scene from the movie indeed <3

Terry Bevis

That must have been so satisfying knowing that Jimmy Page was inspired by what you had crafted!! I love hearing these inside stories Otis. Thank you.

Otis Gibbs

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Ken Stewart

Chris is such a great story-teller! Thanks for posting this Otis. Great stuff.

Bonnie Brodie

Yes, I would love to hear him tell more stories. He’s got that engineering type of mind and so talented at bringing it down a notch so we can picture it in out minds. He’s easy in the eyes too.

NickRatnieks

That's a very interesting story, for sure- well done in really hitting the spot! Now, I know Jimmy Page's luthier- and he was once a guitarist in the late 50s early 60s and he told me that he bought a Gibson 350T in 1961 for (from memory) £375- a small fortune back then. He said they were playing the airline social clubs around London's Heathrow Airport and along with his day job he had the money to buy the guitar- and imported Chet Atkins albums! I will ask him what he did with his ES350 it but he is an expert, so if Jimmy said he said it was a great guitar- then that's a fact!

klopek24

There's a lot of details about the 50's guitars that were just a bit different than the modern methods and the fretwork with the slightly flatter tops was one of those details. Kudos on Mr. Swope for recognizing what it takes to nail the vibe.

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